Black Ice
by The Key of Shooting Stars
Summary: "When you look down at the ice, you see yourself. It seems like an obvious statement, but I believe we've already established that anything I say could be lie. How can you be so sure of what you see when the image is blurred? I'm sure you've heard of the troubles of Old Era, but let me tell you of another tale. Let me give you reason to believe that we are all mirrors."
1. Prologue

**Hello, Just wanted to mention that this is Lily of the Valley rewritten. Try to at least stick around till chapter one, the plot only truly starts then.**

 **The full Summary: Icepaw is born in a time when a carefully set system to protect the clans against some of their members starts to fall apart, and in the meantime, borders are threatened on all sides as Riverclan grows increasingly aggressive and Shadowclan increasingly mysterious. At the same time, Snowpaw, one of the different, leads her own life; one that somehow doesn't quite seem to coincide with Icepaw's version of the clans.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own warriors...**

 **-Key**

 **Prologue:**

Swallownose slowly lowered his muzzle into the slushy waters that had surrounded the Moonstone for the past few moons. Rain had been abundant this season. Screwing his eyes shut against the stinging cold, he waited expectantly for what came next. He gradually felt a creeping whirlpool of darkness close around him, giving him a sensation rather similar to that of falling. Soon greeted by a sharp glow behind his eyelids and the soft touch of grass beneath his paws, he opened his eyes, narrowing them against the starry light before scanning his ancestor's hunting grounds with a watchful eye.

To one side of the clearing stood a familiar brown tabby she-cat; blue eyes sparkling with the light of silverpelt. Unsurprisingly, she looked no different from when the last time the young medicine cat saw her, but he noted with a hint of shock that she could see the outline of the shrubs through her faded form.

"Poppyshade!" He greeted, unable to stop a grin from spreading to his face as he saw his distant ancestor; a small trace of his bloodline that he could trace all the way back to the Old Era of the clans.

"Swallownose," she responded formally, her voice carrying across the clearing although it was clear that the words had not been spoken loudly.

For a moment it almost seemed as though the she-cat was hesitating; weighing her options, but before he even had the time to blink, she was suddenly sitting two tail-lengths ahead of him, tail neatly curled around her paws. He was never sure what to expect from meetings with Starclan, really, but when Poppyshade's smile faded and her gaze darkened, he suddenly felt a chill spread from his nose to tail, as though he could still feel the frosty air around the Moonstone in his dreams. He had instantly felt the mood darken, as though suddenly the skies themselves were on edge.

"Swallownose," She began, looking hesitant, claws sheathing and unsheathing surreptitiously in the annoying manner that only Skyclan cats seemed to have, "Destiny has been clement for many generations, no prophecies, no omens; no disasters."

Swallownose opened his mouth to protest; there had been plenty of conflict between the clans, and if destiny had shown mercy, leafbare definitely had _not_. Yet, instead of speaking words, he simply gaped at the Starclan cat before him, unsure of what to do.

Poppyshade sighed, "Old enemies are rising," she mewed, glancing back over her shoulder.

"What do you mean?" He mewed; half-hoping she would give him an answer that held none of Starclan's reputation for cryptic messages and omens.

 _"See for yourself."_

Instead of responding, his ancestor's eyes suddenly widened before narrowing to slits, and she whirled around to face something that he could not see, unsheathed claws glowing in the pale moonlight. He yowled in alarm, turning to face whatever intruding enemy had invaded his dream, but at the same time he was well aware that his fighting skills were mediocre at best, and he was sure that he looked rather pathetic. For a second he was sure he caught fear scent on the light breeze that surrounded the clearing, and then the scenery flickered before disappearing entirely.

For a moment he simply stood there, alone in the darkness, hoping to calm the pounding of his heart as he realised that he was not yet waking up.

Gradually, he began to make out what seemed to be a swirling mass of fog, and when he looked down at his paws, they were caked in mud. If he had been asked to describe his surroundings, the most accurate word he could have found for it was a swamp, although he couldn't have claimed while being completely truthful that that was what he was currently facing. One of his qualities as medicine cat had always been curiosity; and so, in that moment, when his paws carried him forwards although his own will had not asked them to, he simply let them carry him instead of letting his fright take over.

He was not sure how much time passed like this, but somewhere along the path he began to feel his fur rise along his spine, as though he were being watched. At the same moment he felt a familiar feeling settle through him, as though his emotions were slowly being pushed aside and his sight was being sharpened; feeling that he often had when receiving an omen from Starclan. He stopped abruptly, praying that Starclan knew what they were doing. Suddenly, a pair of light blue eyes blinked at him, contrasting with the darkness that threatend to swallow the land and skies whole. He jumped, startled by the appearance, and felt his heart skip a beat when the figure emerged from the darkness, grey white and black spotted pelt blending into the fog, and padded forward; directly to where he was standing. He took a step back, tripping over his own paws as he did so, and felt a moment of dread before he realized that the cat wasn't aware of his presence.

He stood up, this time taking in his surrounding with a careful eye. The cat in his vision stood stalk-still, surveying at the land before her, looking stangely nostalgic. She flicked her tail, and five more cats emerged from the shadows, immediately followed by a long line of unidentifiable cats hidden by the misty glare of the swamp.

"The downfall of the clans. Splendid, isn't it?" the voice spoke softly at first.

"Poppyshade?" Swallownose mewed hesistantly. Suspicion had instantly flared up in him as the words were spoken.

This time he was not startled when Poppyshade appeared by his side, gazing at the cats with an emotionless eyes; thing that was not common with the brown tabby she-cat. Was it just him or was her fur a darker shade of brown all of a sudden? She didn't answer, simply flicking her tail to the first cat he had seen, the one with the white and black spotted fur. Something about her seemingly blue eyes wasn't right, they seemed to flicker with a hint of orange every few seconds, and upon closer glance, he noticed something that almost like a battle scene reflecting into them, he turned around, shocked to see that the she-cat's army was, indeed surging forward in a never-ending tide of cats, to meet another group, led by five cats, and five more cats standing close behind.

 _The clans,_ he was surprised to realize. He could see the current leaders, most of them anyway. Standing there with their own league of cats, although with each growing moment, with every time a new cat emerged from the shadows, he could see the general feeling of horror spreading like a wildfire after the dry season. From the sidelines, he could see the medicine cats standing there, determination Showing through their stanceeven as despair settled over the clans. He noted with a slight shiver that although he could see many familiar cats, he was not present in the scene; in his place stood a relatively young she-cat.

There was no stare down, no hesitation, between the two opposing groups, simply a moment of fear hardening to anticipation as their claws met those of their attackers. The last image that the vision had to offer was that of the blue-eyed cat, sprinting to meet the battling groups.

His dream then proceeded to overwhelm him with a swarm of paths and images, only to settle on another scene. This one was of cats leaving their territory, _of clan cats_ defeated and splintering off into smaller groups, each heading their own way. Following them were multiple shadows; they were not exactly cats, but Swallownose could see their eyes glowing darkly in the moonless night. It only took a moment for him to realize that these were purely and simply the intruders that he only had to assume had just succeeded in doing what no cat, no twoleg, had ever been capable of doing, which was a lot to say considering the opponents the clans had met. The cats that had defeated the them, still led by the shadow-cat. Worst yet, leading the remnants of clans were starry cats, dozens of starry cats, unseen yet present . He shuddered as the ground turned murky scarlet beneath his paws, and in a wave of dark red, he was back in the swamp, alone this time.

"Swallownose, you have the power to make sure that this never happens. You, the other medicine cats, the leaders, every cat that you have ever seen and all the ones that you will meet in the future; but you must collaborate." Poppyshade's voice growled silkily.

"How?" he mewed huskily, unable to stop himself from letting out a sigh of relief when it became evident that he was not about to be thrown back into another vision.

"Simple, we make sure that the cats we saw in the vision are never capable of launching such an attack."

"There were so many of them! Surely we can't just get rid of them, not without making things worse." He mewed.

"You can't get rid of them," Poppyshade lashed her tail. "But you can make sure that they are never trained to become proper warriors, and that they never have the right type of ambition to do anything dangerous."

"Why would any of the leaders agree to lose potential assets when they haven't done anything wrong yet? Besides, there were rogues there, more rogues than I could count."

"Starclan will worry about that. You only need to be capable of finding the right cats at the right time," She mewed dismissively.

"Poppyshade, why would you-"

"Swallownose, have I ever been wrong before? Do you not trust me?"

"I trust you," he mewed, blinking in confusion when for a moment he thought he saw Poppyfrost's figure drain of colour, taking on a darker gleam, but when he opened his eyes the glint of starlight was the only thing present.

"Then you will trust me when I tell you that a new rule must be added to the code. "

Swallownose opened his mouth to protest, but she flicker her tail, interrupting his words before they had the time to formulate, "Don't waste my time arguing." She snapped, sounding oddly out of character.

"What? You can't just do that! Can you?" He was pacing by now, and couldn't help but stop dead in his tracks when he saw that Poppyshade was… Holding back a laugh?

"Alright _kit_. I've had enough of these games. If you're not going to let a few carefully selected words convince you, then let _me_ give you a real reason to obey." She put emphasis on the last few words, her voice deepening into one that wasn't so unfamiliar, and when he whirled around to face her with what he assumed was an expression that made his jaw seem nearly unhinged from gaping; it was no longer a pale brown tabby she-cat standing before him, but a light grey tabby she-cat.

"Feather-"

"Don't call me that!" She hissed before yawning, suddenly alarmingly calm, "Listen, I don't have time for this. I give you two options; an ultimatum really. You can give in and peacefully rule over the clan along with a select few cats, with only the happiness of a few other cats to lose. Or, the Dark Forest can plague your darned clans until you have no cats left to heal you and no cats left to lead you. Either way, I win; you lose."

He took a step back. Starclan wouldn't let that happen. It wasn't as though this was the first time the Dark Forest tried to meddle with clan life.

"Honestly Swallownose, you surprise me. The Dark Forest isn't winning because of you or me; the only reason for its imminent success is that contrary to popular belief, those who believe in the good of every cat often times end up being their own downfall. I mean, look at your precious Starclan. Take a moment to glance up at the moon when you wake, you'll see that they've made no move to contradict my previous statements."

"Of course they won't if you're the one who attacked-

"I didn't attack her." It was strange to hear her speak without trying to sound threatening. It sounded almost too plain, as though something was missing. Next thing her knew, he was the one laughing, "You expect me to believe that."

"No."

"Then why bother lying?"

"Because anything I say could be a lie." That last comment effectively left him wordlessly waiting to hear what she had to say. It wasn't as though there was much he could do. After all, he was all too aware of her crimes...

"I've already told you that we want to win." She mewed, flickering in and out of sight as the shadows deepened, "But so does Starclan." She was stating the obvious, but Swallownose had to admit that she had caught his attention. Of course Starclan wanted to win: so long as they protected the clans they protected their legacy. Maybe he could manage to get away. The mouse heart couldn't follow him into the living world anyway.

"Your thoughts aren't exactly private here." Featherheart deadpanned before he could de anything. "You really do think you are special, don't you? So sure that Starclan needs you just as much as you need them. Convinced that your relationship is that of a wise elder advising a young kit." He wouldn't put it past the Dark Forest to try to convince them otherwise. Besides, it wasn't as though there were any replacement clans just waiting to rise to the top.

"Now _that_ was the most ironic thing I've ever heard. Look at the puddle, Swallownose." He was tempted to disobey, but decided that it wasn't best to do so when confronted to Featherclaw of all cats. He was unsurprised to see that the only thing staring back at him from the water was himself.

"What do you see?" He wasn't even going to gratify that question with a response.

"Have you ever heard of the cat who was taken by a hawk? What about the one that fell off a cliff? The one taken by another clan? The kit that wandered too far into the forest?They were only the start of a carefully elaborated plan, so grandiose that the survival of the clans was practically assured. You were never unique. Let me give you a reason to believe that we are all mirrors."

 _"Now look again..._

 **Alright… so… That took me a few hours to write. Constructive criticism is needed and grandly appreciated, so please. Review. (Future chapters will probably have a QOTD, but since this is the prologue, this one won't).**

 **(Let's try to reach three reviews at least please)**

 **Have a nice day.**

 **-Key**

 **(Also, for anyone that cares):**

 **So, this is a sort of partly rewritten partly edited version of Lily of the Valley. I haven't updated Lily of the Valley in a while, and when I started rereading it, there were some parts that I wanted to improve. Updates will be once or twice every other week until I run out of chapters to edit and have to start writing whole chapters and planning the future plot. For those of you that probably didn't read Lily of the Valley, Welcome to Black Ice, the new and hopefully improved version.**

 **(Just a small note: This chapter was edited rather than rewritten (although I still changed a major part of the plot) , but there will be some chapters with more major changes.).**

 **Yep, this AN is getting long, and so, I will spare you from any more boring notes…. For now.**


	2. For No Reason

**This chapter is more of a filler. It's also sort of short. To anyone who read Lily of the Valley, Snowpaw is a new character, to anyone who wasn't... she's still a new character I guess... Things WILL get more interesting next time this pov comes along, but I needed a chapter to explain certain things.**

 **review answers at the bottom.**

"Duck! Swipe left- No! Right. Stop leaving your tail exp-

Snowpaw groaned internally as she hit the ground with an audible thud, immersing her white fur in the fine layer of mud that littered the ground. It was at times like these that she regretted on taking up on Springleap's offer. Of course Gingerpaw would beat her every time; she was the only one allowed to train!

"Snowpaw!" Ruthless looked to be the most accurate way to describe Gingerpaw's mentor when it came to training. "Don't just lie there! Get up-Can't you see she's leaving herself exposed! Gingerpaw, _never_ let your guard down, it could be you downfall in a real battle." Springleap was pacing now, muttering pessimistic words about the future of both apprentices.

Snowpaw leaped to her paws, lashing out at Gingerpaw's ears and cuffing them just hard enough to disorient the tabby she-cat. She was surprised when Springleap stopped yowling angry comments, and pacing, long enough for her to leap over her sparring partner and kick out her legs from beneath her. As a matter of fact, it almost looked as though she was paying no attention to the fight as Gingerpaw found her balance easily and retaliated by pinning a distracted Snowpaw's tail to immobilize her as she pummelled her with strikes given from sheathed claws.

"Darkclaw! What brings you here?" Springleap suddenly meowed with exaggerated volume. Gingerpaw and Snowpaw froze, exchanging worried glances as both of them scrambled to their paws and tried to come up with reasonable excuses. Luckily Springleap beat them to it, "I was just training with Gingerpaw."

"Why's Snowpaw's here with you?" He didn't seem particularly threatening as he spoke, but it was enough to kindle the spark of fear that she, Shadowfern, and every other cat like them surely harboured.

"I needed some cat Gingerpaw's height for target practice," She intoned with what was a carefully practiced act of undisguised boredom. Darkclaw appeared satisfied with her answer, but let out one last comment before answering his clanmate's question, "Snowpaw's much smaller, and you know Blackstar would be furious if he caught you practicing training moves with one of them. You should be more careful. Actually, that's why I'm here. You were supposed to be on border patrol with Troutwhisker, Sunstrike, and Goldpaw and I; you can't just keep on skipping your duties." With that, he left.

"Half-moon;Moonhigh. Got it?" Springleap mewed, padding towards the river after Darkclaw. Gingerpaw followed, casting an apologetic glance towards her before disappearing with a loud splash followed by a few harsh words of reprimand from her mentor for being too loud and scaring away all the prey. Snowpaw was left to mull what boring chore she would pretend she had been completing.

* * *

 _"Let all cats old enough to swim across the river gather here for a clan meeting!" Snowpaw flicked her ear; Flightstar always acted as though every cat was deaf when calling on meetings, but she was sure any cat near sunningrocks could still hear her._

 _"Vixenpaw, Deerpaw, and Snowpaw, please step forwards." Even if she had tried, Snowpaw couldn't have accurately described her feelings at the moment. Her heart nearly skipped a beat every time her eyes met Swallownose or Flightstar's, and she couldn't help the sinking feeling that had made residence in her conscience. She could see that Vixenpaw was just as scared, but Deerpaw's eyes were gleaming, his fur well-groomed, and he appeared confident that the punishment afflicted to random clan members would not be bestowed upon him._

 _From the corner of her eye, Snowpaw caught Gingerpaw, Goldpaw, and Reedpaw, casting reassuring grins her way. Goldpaw even took the risk of miming Flightstar's overly dramatic way of speaking, with exaggerated eye rolls. Gingerpaw halfheartedly joined him, but she was more careful not to be noticed by any warriors. Goldpaw, on the other hand, was promptly cuffed over the ears by an extremely unamused-looking Sleetfall._

 _Usually, the oldest cat was the first to be called forwards, but Snowpaw was forced to watch with increasing anxiety as first Deerpaw, then Vixenpaw were called forth and formerly accepted as apprentices of Riverclan after having passed the assessment that determined the course of their entire lives. Any other cat might have asked what the assessment itself was, but Snowpaw had been Riverclan her whole life, and she knew better than to try to get an answer. No cat other than Swallownose and Flightstar knew what the assessment was, cats were told that all they needed to know was that they had been evaluated since kithood, nothing more._

 _"Snowpaw, step forwards." Looking back at the ceremony, she told herself that she should have caught the tell-tale signs; the ones that were all she should have needed to confirm the fact that her apprenticeship was indeed about to take a turn for the worse._

 _"As you all know, after two days, new apprentices are evaluated." Another sign that Snowpaw hadn't noticed- the way that Flightstar the 'mighty leader' almost looked as though she felt guilty and slightly confused. "After much time, we have decided that it be best if Snowpaw trained alongside Shadowpaw." If cats had previously been chattering away amongst themselves, not truly paying attention, they were definitely all focused at that point. Snowpaw could practically feels their stares buring into her pelt._

 _"Meeting dismissed."_

 _Snowpaw had of course heard stories of cats being frozen in shock, but it wasn't until that moment that she understood the true meaning of it. She saw cats leaving, knew that her friends had gone, and still, she sat at the same spot in the clearing. She should be upset, or annoyed, frustrated, embarrassed, and yet she felt nothing. It wasn't until she noticed one other pair of eyes directed her way that she felt feeling rush back to her limbs._

 _She was fairly certain that she probably looked rather dejected, and she she sat up stiffly, meeting the eyes of the calico she-cat that still sat at the edge of the clearing. Shadowpaw's eyes were filled with hatred, and Snowpaw was prepared to glare back at her until it occurred to her that the green-eyed apprentice's anger was in fact directed towards Swallownose, who was sitting at the mouth of his den, wordlessly observing the two apprentices._

* * *

She had hardly finished weaving reeds to block a gap in the nursery wall, that she was fairly sure Spotkit had made, when she was called by Troutflight. Sunhigh was nearing, and the light drizzle that had been hanging over the clans for the past few days had lifted, it wasn't uncommon for her to be bothered more frequently on days like these. "Snowpaw? Swallownose asked me to fetch you. Apparently a branch fell through the roof of the medicine den."

There were plenty of apprentices in Riverclan, six to be exact, and five out of those six were currently training. There was no name for what cats like Snowpaw and Shadowfoot were, and so the two she-cats had taken to calling themselves 'the chosen ones'. It irritated Swallownose when he caught them, but so far no cat had ever outright reprimanded them for vainly attempting to ridicule the clan leaders. There was no specific place for them in the clan either, but they tended to be the ones asked to fix dens, take inventory of herbs and prey, divide the former evenly amongst cats, help the medicine cats, etc. In between the tasks, they basically had nothing to do. They had no mentors, and the punishments for being caught training were strict:not worth the risk.

"Alright I'll take care of it." She mewed, dipping her head in so-called politeness to hide the way her eyes had narrowed in annoyance.

'Chosen' cats were often disreguarded and scorned, for they did not quite earn their keep the same way as the other. Most of all, any cat that crossed their path was often surrounded by a cloud of confusion, because there was no real reason to waste a perfectly healthy cat by forbidding them to train. They frequently theorized that there was something that they weren't being told, that something was off about the Chosen. Snowpaw and Shadowfoot were avoided, it was simple as that.

She reluctantly padded over to the medecine den, only to stop in her tracks seconds before she reached the entrance. Inside, it was airy and spacious, but that wasn't the source of her problem, which stemmed from the fact that it was nearly pitch-black inside the den. There was no branch protruding from the roof and no sunlight spilling into the dwelling. She began to back away as it dawned on her that Troutflight had been trying to humiliate her, only to find a mass of reddish-brown fur barring her way out.

For a brief moment she nearly panicked at the sight of Swallownose, green eyes narrowed and fur bristling in what she, through her own fear, was able to decipher as...also fear. "If you don't have a good reason to be here, the exit is that way." He flicked his tail towards the clearing.

She didn't need to be told twice. As she padded back into the clearing, unsuccessfully trying to ignore Troutflight and Sunstrike's snickers of laughter, she felt Blackfoot's stare boring into her back.

 _Someday you will be nothing but ashes and I'll be on top..._

* * *

Riverclan allegiances(these will become more accurate with some events next chapter)

Leader:

Blackstar: Black tom with dark green eyes.

Deputy:

Brookpath: Brown tabby and white she-cat with blue eyes.

Medecine cat:

Swallownose: Red tabby tom with green eyes.

Warriors:

Alderstripe: White tom with grey tabby stripes and amber eyes.

Greyfeather: Dark grey tabby she-cat with amber eyes.

Shadowfoot: Calico she-cat with dark green eyes

Springleap: White she-cat with blue-grey stripes and odd eyes (amber and blue).

Mentor to Gingerpaw.

Sleetfall: Grey tabby she-cat with blue eyes.

Goldpaws mentor.

Darkclaw: Dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes.

Ebonyeye : White she-cat with extremely dark blue eyes.

Greyflash: Cream she-cat with one grey stripe of fur and grey eyes.

Mentor to Vixenpaw.

Quickeye: Brown and white she-cat with green eyes.

Mudpelt: Dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes.

Reedpaws mentor

Hailfoot: Grey tom with white paws and blue eyes.

Floodfur: Blue-grey tabby tom with unusually, or so at least for a Riverclan cat, long fur and green eyes.

Troutflight: Yellow tom with amber eyes.

Mentor to Deerpaw

Sunstrike: Yellow tabby tom with amber eyes.

Apprentices:

Reedpaw: Dark ginger tabby tom with green eyes.

Gingerpaw: Ginger tabby she-cat with green eyes.

Goldpaw: Grey tabby tom with golden eyes

Vixenpaw: Ginger she-cat with yellow eyes.

Deerpaw: Dark brown tabby tom with yellow eyes.

Snowpaw: White she-cat with black paws, tail-tip, and ear. Amber eyes.

Queens:

Morningdew: Ginger and white spotted she-cat with blue eyes.

Kits:

Firkit: Brown tabby she-kit with green eyes.

Spotkit: Spotted brown and white tom with green eyes.

Elders:

Lynxpelt: Tortoiseshell she-cat with grey eyes.

Badgerstripe: Ginger tabby tom with grey eyes.

 **I already said this-but sort of a filler chapter.**

 **Review answers:**

 **I-Really-Hope-Not: Thanks, sorry for taking so long to update.**

 **SwiftstormWrites: Thanks for the advice, I tend to write sentences that are too long.**

 **Fyremyst: Thanks, and you're actually completely right. I tend to have hard time describing emotions... But some mentions of the eyes are there for a reason that will makes sense at some point.**

 **Silver:Thanks, I'll try.**

Please review and leave constructive criticism.

-Key


	3. The was no Stream

**Hello once again readers. I'm just saying this like that, but yes, I am aware that it makes no sense that I just wrote a chapter about Snowpaw, then said she was swept away by a river as a kit. I will not explain... Until many many chapters.**

 **And Icepaw isn't crazy... The last part means something.**

 **Review answers at the end.**

Icepaw slowly lifted one paw, then another, making sure to avoid all susceptible distractions as she approached her target. Unsuspecting, the following was peacefully watching its surroundings, waiting for its fellows to join it, flicking tail the only indication that it was alert and watchful. Leaning back on her hind legs, she attempted to calculate the distance needed for her leap. She wasn't close enough yet, if she jumped now she was more likely to disturb the undergrowth and alert her prey, or so Dustfur said an eight moon old apprentice should be capable of telling.

Moving one more tail-lenth, hoping that the rare area of long grass would conceal her white fur, thanking Starclan that it was at least useful in leaf-bare. She willed herself to be silent, unnoticeable, part of the background, breath and heartbeat mingling with the awakening earth and breeze, long fur ruffling in sync with the still yellow tinged grass. She narrowed her eyes, blocking out the background and focusing on her target, five tail-lengths, four tail-lengths, three tail-lenths-

A rustle in the undergrowth, and Icepaw froze, but not before she caught sight of the blue-grey pelt of Skyclan's medecine cat. The sight was immediately followed by the overpowering scent of watermint. Still trying to dissimulate herself, she held back a hiss of frustration as her prey caught sight of Fernmist. She wondered if either of them could hear her hear beating louder.

Luckily it seemed that the healer was informed of the assessments going on that morning, and the green-eyed she-cat left without further disturbing the brown-furred target, but not until she finally catching sight of Icepaw. She had to remind herself to move as Fernmist turned to give her a slight nod before continuing along her path. Was it just her imagination or were her eyes narrowed? She averted her own eyes, recalling something that Waterpetal had once said. _Don't stay around Fernmist for too long. It's not safe. Trust me, someday you'll find out._

Waterpetal, she often teased the medecine cat apprentice, was too much like Starclan. Cryptic and mysterious in every way possible. In this case there weren't many meanings that Icepaw could make of her words. Fernmist could just be dangerous, or hold a grudge against her for whatever reason, but there was always another possibility. After all, Fernmist was the one who got the final word on which cats were- She would have shaken herself, or asked someone to laugh at her and mention how paranoid she was. She wasn't a kit anymore and she shouldn't be too quick to jump to conclusions, yet she still shivered as she thought of the story of Snowkit. Swept away by the river on a stormy day, or _thrown_ into it because she was determined as one of them? _Isn't the answer obvious? Betrayal._

Icepaw realized too late that she had lost focus, not even mid-leap, Dustfur had already turned around and knocked her over with one simple swipe of his paw. Temporarily winded, she grinned, although embarrassed, as she managed to sit up, pieces of dry grass clinging to her fur.

"Next time you try that," he began, "Focus," Icepaw already knew she often day-dreamed, "And second of all, you might want to try a different approach. In open territory, it is usually better to rely on speed and surprise rather than stalking, because out in the open you can easily be spotted. I know it's risky, but let's just be glad that our territory is not near Windclan, that way these skills will mainly be for practice."

Icepaw nodded before he continued, " I think we should work on more tree techniques now, don't you?" And the small white and black spotted she-cat agreed, eager to change exercises, and to be as far away from the clearing where Fernmist found most of her herbs.

* * *

Icepaw stood in the training clearing before Dustfur. Lately, or so ever since before she had even been born, it seemed as if every cat was on edge, sharpening their fighting skills until ever cat became an expert and could easily take on three cats at once. Of course, to her this sounded like a normal routine, having been part of Skyclan her whole life. Now that she took a moment to consider things, there had never been any orders to do so, the warriors basically had to govern themselves as of late. Even Icepaw was old enough to be aware that that was not how things should be.

Tallbark, the deputy, was a strange cat. Always snapping at some cat, disappearing when he was supposed to assign patrols, eager to cause trouble, and overall just another proof that Pebblestar didn't have all her head. Fernmist... was Fernmist. She was disinterested in doing anything that wasn't part of medecine cat duties. Therefore, she offered little to no guidance. Waterpetal had no power whatsoever as a medecine cat apprentice. Pebblestar, at best, stared off into the distance, paying no attention to the clan and always muttering things about a grey feather whenever Icepaw was around. Of course, this was no surprise, even neighbouring rogues knew of the rumours that circulated about Skyclan's crazy leader. _Riverclan's leader wasn't much better mind you..._

"-and use your claws to keep your trajectory- Icepaw! Are you even listening to me?"

Icepaw lowered her head, blue eyes downcast, and Dustfur sighed.

"I said, we are going to start by practicing two fighting techniques, then I might consider training to travel from one tree to another."

Icepaw nodded again, the phrase sounded familiar, as though at least a small part of her had been listening to her on of her mentor's never-ending lectures.

"The first technique is called fall. It is more of an advanced move, so we will not be practicing it from the usual height yet." Dustfur continued, and Icepaw tilted her head to the side, waiting to hear the full instructions. Dustfur was seemingly satisfied that she was listening

" The move, when performed at an experienced level, starts with you being at a branch that is reasonably high, or a branch that is at the maximum height a cat should jump from, for the most skilled. You should then jump down from that branch with claws unsheathed. You have to make sure your jump is calculated, because then you have to hook your claws onto a lower branch."

"The tricky part is that you can't _just_ let your claws stop your fall. You need to make sure to go with the momentum that you have already built up and let yourself swing after very quickly sheathing your claws back as you let go of the branch before your claws have the time to get twisted." He finally ended his instructions, and Icepaw braced herself for another set of instructions from her mentor, who she had learned a while ago explained everything more thoroughly than most cats.

Surprisingly, the brown tabby tom did not continue talking, and instead eyed the huge maple tree that stood before them pensively. Meanwhile, Icepaw was busy finding all the ways to this move could go wrong, wincing as she did so. It was not only was very probable to get a twisted or ripped claw, but also likely to simply fall right down. _Or the tree could be the one to fall..._ Where had that come from? The tree was old, but it was healthy and unlikely to fall _._ If she made any miscalculations, she could get caught on another branch, or injured for that matter.

She tore her gaze away from the random spot she had been staring at in the distance, an old and gnarled oak tree, she noted, when her mentor's attention suddenly snapped back to her. I've _seen an oak tree similar to that one, havent I?_ _Hadn't it been falling?_ "We will be practicing in the willow near the stream, but first I'll show you how it looks in a more common kind of tree," Dustfur mewed, flicking his tail.

* * *

The stream was not particularly close to the border, but Icepaw knew that it was fed from the gorge river, which was said to have flooded moons ago. _Yes, that must have been how it happened, the flood created the stream... It's wasn't supposed to be there._ She sniffed the air, but found no trace of rain in the air, and there was no breeze to bring in storm clouds. Lifting her head to see where her mentor waiting, she caught up to him, closing the distance she had gained from trailing behind. Before her stood a bubbling stream, barely two tail-lengths deep. Although the overall feeling of the scenery was peaceful, she couldn't quite shake off the sense of foreboding that came with the sound of water.

Ignoring her mentor, who was still rambling on about fighting techniques, she took a few steps closer to the water. _Haven't I once stood on a tree, a willow tree, and looked down at the faraway water?_ On its surface she could clearly see her own reflection staring back at her. She was still staring down at the small waves that washed up on her paws when she noticed the image of a coppery coloured haze being reflected near her own copy.

"Dustf-

Before she had the time to say anything she was shoved into the stream. It felt colder than it had just a few seconds earlier, and she was surprised to feel a strong current tugging at her fur. _She felt panic closing in on her as she vainly attempted to break the surface of the murky waters around her._ Wait. The water wasn't murky, it was actually quite clear. _Her lungs ached for air as she was once again forced under the surface._ She'd only been underwater for a second... _Above her the sky was streak with lightning, wind tearing through the land as the river swelled with rain._ Where had that notion come from? It was perfectly clear out there. She wasn't even in a river!

The stream! She was still in the stream. The waves felt so _real... There was no stream, there had never been a stream. Maybe there would be a stream after all the flooding. No. There was no stream. The world was a blur of colours and sounds. The was only a storm. A storm, a river, betrayal, and the looming shape of a tree drawing closer at a frightening speed..._

Its always been here lurking, and now it's coming.

* * *

Allegiances:

 **Skyclan:**

 **Leader:**

Pebblestar: Dark grey tabby she-cat with amber eyes.

 **Deputy:**

Tallbark: Dark brown tabby tom with very dark green eyes.

 **Medicine cats:**

Fernmist: Blue-grey she-cat with green eyes.

Waterpetal: Silver tabby she-cat with a whiteish-grey chest and paws and green eyes.

 **Warriors:**

Branchinglight: Dark brown she-cat with odd eyes.

Apprentice: Redpaw

Lightheart: White she-cat with yellow eyes.

Apprentice: Whitepaw

Nettlefur: Blue-grey tom with wild fur and yellow eyes.

Twigleap: Small pale brown she-cat with grass-green eyes.

Oakpelt: Yellow tom with amber eyes.

Dustfur: Brown tom with green eyes.

apprentice: Icepaw

Mallowfrost: Solid dark grey tom with sky blue eyes (Cascade).

Duskfrost: Dark grey tabby with one white paw and icy blue eyes (Cascade).

Mossflight: Tortoiseshell with green eyes and white chest.

Twistedleap: White she-cat with amber eyes(twisted left front paw).

Apprentice: Stormpaw

Rosethorn: Cream coloured she-cat with amber eyes.

Stonejump: Black tom with grey eyes and strangely large paws.

Pineclaw: Black and white spotted tom with dark amber eyes.

Apprentice: Frostpaw

Mousepelt: Brown and white spotted tom with yellow eyes.

White-ember: White she-cat with small brown speckles going from her head to her tail-tip down her back. One blue eye one green eye.

Burrfur: Blue-grey tom with white paws and yellow eyes.

Aprentice:Sunpaw

 **Apprentices:**

Frostpaw: White she-cat with black paws, ears and tail-tips, blue eyes with hidden scar on her throat (I-really-hope-not)

Sunpaw: Tall tom with long golden fur, white chest, and blue-grey eyes. (I-really-hope-not).

Stormpaw: Pale grey she-cat with darker spots and blue eyes. Scar on muzzle. (I-really-hope-not)

Flamepaw: Calico she-cat with green eyes.

Whitepaw: White tom with green eyes and one black paw.

Redpaw: Redish-grey tom with blue eyes.

Icepaw: White she-cat with black paws, tail-tip, and ear. Blue eyes.

 **Queens** : Lakepool: Cream and white tabby she-cat with blue eyes.

 **Kits:**

Sparrowkit: Brown tabby tom with amber eyes and white chest.

Larkkit: White she-kit with blue eyes.

Blackkit: Black she-kit with a ginger forepaw, ear, and tail-tip as well as amber eyes.

Elders:

Milkeye: Cream tabby tom with strangely white-ish yellow eyes.

Barkwhisker: Golden tabby tom with amber eyes.

 **Anyone think we can get to three reviews?**

 **Constructive criticism is always welcome.**

 **-Key**

Blizzard Whisper (chapter 1 review): I might invent clans for future stories, thanks for the tip.

Silver: Thanks.

Guest: Thank you for pointing that out, I will be more careful in the future, but for now the cats will remain the way they are as the physical impossibilities do not affect the plot.


	4. Starless

**Thank you to all of those still reading this:).**

 _"Hey, kit." Snowpaw bristled as she caught sight of a white and grey blur, followed by the flash of odd blue and amber eyes. She burrowed deeper into her nest, obstinately refusing to pay attention to Gingerpaw's mentor._

 _"If you can stop being dramatic for a minute, I have an offer for you." Springleap didn't wait to see if she was listening. "I'll train you."_

 _"What?" If she had previously been determined to ignore the senior warrior, she had completely tossed the plan aside to listen to what she had to say._

 _"If you manage to keep a secret, I'll train you, just as I trained Shadowpaw." Springleap repeated, sounding impatient, "Listen, I don't particularly care whether you as an individual come or not, but I do care about my clan. At full moon, Gingerpaw and I will stay behind, it will be then that we have the opportunity to train. If you don't show up I'll assume you aren't interested."_

 _Snowpaw was still awake long after Springleap left and dawn had started to peak._

* * *

At this point even Snowpaw had to admit that she looked more like a fish out of the water than a cat. Her fur sticking out at odd angles and clumped together with mud. Once again, Gingerpaw had pinned her, grinning in good nature as she stepped away from her opponent. Not wasting any time, She leaped to her paws and immediately proceeded in feinting to the right before leaping over Gingerpaw's outstretched paws to land her own blow on the ginger she-cat's left flank.

That was the disadvantage of training at night; she could hardly see anything. To add to the difficulty, each cat was being pelted by sheets of rain. It was as though Springleap purposely kept on choosing the worse weather for training. _"It'll make you a better in the long run,"_ the tabby she-cat had shrugged. _"By Starclan it will!"_ They had been practicing during a hailstorm and she had felt perfectly entitled to criticize the mentor.

Gingerpaw retaliated by pawing at her ears enough to disorient her. The ringing in her ears combined with the sound of rushing water was enough to send her stumbling for a split-second. Snowpaw recovered from the attack quickly, but no quickly enough; one moment she was preparing to strike and the next all she felt beneath her paws was air. In a matter of seconds Gingerpaw had beaten her.

"Really? You let yourself be defeated so easily? Get up! Gingerpaw, what have I told you about letting your guard down?" As always, Springleap was conducting her routinely pacing and ever-welcome optimism. Luckily, a soft-hearted warrior was anything but what the young she-cat needed to teach her as quickly as possible in a limited amount of time.

She rose to her paws and this time leaped towards Gingerpaw instead of waiting for her to attack first. For a moment she was sure that she had successfully outpaced the older apprentice, but quickly realized the opposite as her opponent shit up to her paws and kicked Snowpaw over.

"Don't be a Gingerpaw, Snowpaw, keep your guard up instead of telling yourself you've already won. Gingerpaw, that kick was a bit sloppy, wouldn't you say," Springleap sighed, "What's that supposed to mean?!" Gingerpaw protested, shooting a glare towards her mentor.

Aside from training, life as a 'chosen one' could get pretty monotone. Wake up every morning at dawn, wake up a grumpy Shadowfoot before an annoyed warrior came to fetch them even though she was practically nocturnal, eat stale prey from the previous day, receive orders from the deputy, complete said orders till a little last mid-day, then basically be forced to sit in camp without interacting with anyone else. Snowpaw snorted, the 'training' that she and Shadowfoot had to complete was more like slavery than anything else.

In her moment of distraction, Snowpaw was once again pinned. Springleap let out a disapproving hiss, lashing her tail angrily. Nonetheless, she said nothing, opting to observe her youngest apprentice's next actions. She was therefore completely unprepared when the grey and white she-cat leaped towards her and shoved her underwater.

She didn't even have time to register the shock of cold water before she was joined by a orange mass of fur that she could only assume was Gingerpaw. Flailing her paws, she used what little swimming training she had mixed in with Riverclan instincts to attempted to rise to the surface. Instead she was met by a fresh wave of panic as the apprentice kept her firmly under the surface.

 _This is it,_ she told herself. _They've finally decided to get rid of the useless one._ Springleap had grown tired of the hopeless case that she was and Gingerpaw had followed. _Oh please, I'm not going to let myself be drowned without a fight._ Unfortunately she had no underwater training whatsoever.

 _What in the name of Starclan?_ She almost said the words out loud. Her tail was suddenly being tugged and she was being dragged away from Gingerpaw and deeper into the water. She churned desperately against the grip of her new attacker, eyes screwed shut against the sting of water. Her lungs were starting to scream for oxygen, Shut up, I'm trying!

She wasn't sure whether or not she was dreaming, but she abruptly felt a change in the atmosphere around her. One moment she was underwater and the next she was spluttering for breath as she broke through the surface of the water. "Could you have struggled any harder?" Shadowfoot's voice reached her ears from the pitch darkness.

"Yes. Yes I could have, and I would have if I wouldn't be dumped in the nearest river at the first sign of trouble," she hissed, scrambling onto the sandy ground of the cavern. Water cascaded off of her pelt in such a way that made it impossible for her to open her eyes.

"You would think that you'd be used to it by now, but nooo, ever time Snowpaw the mighty warrior just has to forget all about the past moons." Shadowfoot muttered.

"I don't recall you ever being thrown underwater without notice every quarter-moon," She retorted, shaking her fur. She made sure to splash the calico she-cat rather than the walls around them, but the older she-cat didn't seem bothered, much to her own annoyance. "I hear something..." she mewed. Snowpaw unsheathed her claws, turning to face the exit that didn't require swimming underneath the mouth of the cave.

Shadowfoot was right, the sound of pawsteps was growing louder by the second. "I did not just get dragged under four tail-lengths of water just for my disobedience to be discovered by some random cat!"she hissed. As soon as this cat shows it's muzzle I'll be tearing it off! She had already formed a battle-plan when the cat, that she could hardly see in the darkness, finally emerged from the tunnel.

She hissed, ready to use the place of light at her advantage, but just as she was about to leap towards her target, her tail was pinned to the ground, "Dont be such a Dry-paw! It's just Reedpaw." Shadowfoot mewed at the same time as the newcomer skidded to a halt, "Itsjustmepleasedontkillme?"

"If I'm a Drypaw he's a Bugpaw, skittish as a Starclan accursed butterfly," she muttered to hide her embarrassment at her failure to detect the scent of her clanmate. "I don't speak sarcasm," was the other apprentice's simple response. That wasn't sarcasm, she deadpanned internally.

"Waiiit a minute, since when does he know about the secret passage?" She mewed pointedly instead. "Snowpaw, no offence here, but you're literally the only cat on this planet that never heard about the passage before actually seeing it."

"You're here too?!" Why am I always the last informed when it come to things like this?" She groaned when Goldpaw spoke, "Is there a feast planned down here or something?" "No, I just had to bring another cat to use as shield. In case Shadowfoot wasn't there to stop you from attacking." He replied. Reedpaw must have cuffed him over the ears because he let out a yowl of protest and didn't say anything else after that.

"I really don't care which one of you wants to other to get shredded. Why are you here? Did anyone follow you?" She growled.

"Great Starclan it's a wonder your ears aren't shredded yet with that attitude of yours," Reedpaw mewed, "Gingerpaw sent me; Darkclaw is suspicious and you better get back to camp. Now."

"I followed," Goldpaw supplied, stating the obvious.

"And you didn't feel the need to tell us this earlier?" Snowpaw had been about the say something similar until Shadowfoot beat her to it. She glared at the two littermates, which was useless considering the fact that none of them could see a thing.

* * *

 _Another day another time for spitting sarcastic comments at every cat... Without them noticing of course. Yes, Starclan, as you can see, I like to start my days with a little optimistic speech._

"Saying your prayers to Starclan again?" It was more of a comment than a question. "Sure..." Snowpaw answered. "Whatever, you've got to come see this!" Swallownose has been packing away herbs all morning." "Sooo?" Snowpaw answered dubiously. Great. She's gone crazy too.

"Let me finish," Shadowfoot snapped, "He's been ignoring Blackstar and Brookpath, muttering weird things and clawing at anyone who tried to come near."

"And that's special because..."

Shadowfoot sighed, "just get up and go see for yourself already!"

The sunlight outside contrasted sharply with the darkness of her den, and it took a few seconds for her eyes to adjust enough for her to see where she was going. Her curiosity was sparked when she saw that a crowd was indeed gathered around the medicine den. _Maybe I ought to start paying more attention to what goes on out here..._

The crowd shifted uneasily, murmurs spreading through them as Snowpaw tried to get a view of what was happening up front. She was still too far to hear what Swallownose was rambling about, but she could clearly see Blackstar standing next to him, vainly attempting to have a reasonable conversation with whatever part of the medicine cat wasn't insane beyond repair. _Unfortunate considering there isn't one sane cat in this clearing. The poor old rat probably tripped on a rock and fell on his head._

The green-eyed tabby's voice rose in volume, "None of you get it!" he spat, "It was the wrong one! The wrong one!" Well, if we did get it there'd be a problem here too, she snorted, earning a claw-strike over the ears from Ebonyeye. Luckily the other warriors were too preoccupied with the fresh opportunity to gossip to notice Snowpaw's slip-up. _Oh yeah, it's true, I'm just a sad little apprentice when in public. Point taken._

She was still several tail-lengths away from Swallownose, and several cats stood in her way, so it was only normal for her to expect that she wouldn't be noticed. Unfortunately, that wasn't quite how things went. The reddish-brown tom stopped in his tracks and slowly turned to face the crowd. His gaze traveled from cat to cat, as though he was only just then noticing their presence. She nervously attempted to take step back, only to find that the gap that had opened to let her pass had closed back behind her. _Well, time for plan B. Stay very still, and hope he turns to a grasshopper, or that I turn to an eagle and manage to fly away._

Finally, his eyes shifted to the spot where she was standing, "The wrong one..." he muttered, "Darn you Greyfeather. Darn you to the Dark Forest and back." He was laughing hysterically, "You're all doomed. You're all doomed and I can just get out of here whenever I want..." _Greyfeather?!_ Snowpaw gasped.

"Not so fast-" Blackstar's growl was cut off, "If the wrong cat if here, it shouldn't matter if I leave. One missing for the Original, one gone for the Others." He sounded strangely confident, as though every word that he said made sense. _Oh my Starclan, this cat is nuttier than a goldfish trapped in a nutshell._

"But- Just... whatever?" Blackstar sighed in defeat. His words were met with outrage, but Snowpaw wasnt particularity interested in what they were saying anymore. Swallownose had mentioned something important... someone important... She slipped back through the crowd, still shocked that a certain grey tabby she-cat had been mentioned. She was just about to reach the mouth of her den when she was met with a wall of ginger and brown fur, twin yellow eyes blinking up at her.

"You must be the cursed cat he was talking about," Vixenpaw mewed. "Yeah, he kept on cursing your mother," Deepaw added. Snowpaw blinked back at them impassively, "Greyflash is my mother."

"Starclan must hate you, to make you like Shadowpaw and then have your mother disappear." Vixenpaw taunted, ignoring Snowpaw's previous statement. "Grey _flash_ is my mother," she repeated.

"No, she's Gingerpaw, Reedpaw, and Goldpaw's mother." Deerpaw mewed.

Snowpaw hissed, if she could she would be throwing a string of curses at the two youngest apprentices. Why won't they just drop the subject? Greyflash had raised her, Greyfeather had disappeared shortly after she was born.

"Starclan hates you! Starclan hates you! Starless cat!" Their voices rose in intensity, but she shut them up with a glare, "Aren't you tired of such kit-like behaviour?" She mewed before padding away. She shouldn't have spoken to them like that; they were likely to tell an older warrior, but she wasn't particularity concerned about that.

 _Pffft Starclan. There is no Starclan._

 _They were right about one thing: I really am Starless._

 **Contructive criticism is always appreciated,**

 **Please review**

 **-Key**


	5. Not so old

**I'm sorry for continuously failing to update over the past few weeks. Summer can be busy. On an other note, here I was, ABSOLUTELY unsure of what to write for this chapter, only to notice that's I'd already left myself a note about that last time I updated, so I wasted more time. On the positive side, the next Snowpaw chapter is already written cheers (unless you find this story terrible in which case... sorry?). It'll be posted in two days (because it needs some editing).**

 **The Unnamed Guest: Thanks for the review. I'll try to revise my paragraphs to avoid making that mistake too often.**

 **Thank you to those who reviewed the first chapter.**

 _I'm not crazy_

 _I'm not crazy_

 _I'm not crazy_

 _I'm not..._

 _I'm..._

 _Positively insane._

Well, so much for positivity.

Icepaw jumped when the bushes to her left rustled, "Imnotcrazy," the words were out of her mouth before she had to time to see which cat was there. _Great. Way to make a point, She thought dryly._

"Is there any way you can just, sayyyy, pretend I never said that?" She pleaded once Flamepaw came to stop next to her.

"Sure, I can. But I'm pretty sure she can not," Sunpaw emerged from the bushes.

Icepaw groaned, dramatically sinking to the ground, "My. Reputation. Is... ruined. Are there any more of you that I should know of? A couple of Shadowclanners perhaps?"

Flamepaw who had until then been able to contain herself, collapsed onto the ground next to her littermate, laughing uncontrollably until Icepaw whacked her in the face with her tail, "Why are you here anyway?" She mewed.

Flamepaw was still busy choking on her own laughter, and she ignored the calico she-cat, instead neatly side-stepping her to face Sunpaw. He narrowed his eyes in confusion, "All jokes aside, are you sure you're okay? You do know that today is assessment day right? The day that determines whether you go to the gathering or not... So we were here, hunting."

She pressed a paw to her face. _Way to go. Terrific. Of course they'd still be doing their assessments._ She'd been focused on other things and had completely forgotten about the evaluations for a moment.

"Yeah... I guess I just finished early..." She lied uneasily, hoping that the other apprentices would buy it. In truth she had practically begged Dustfur to end the training session, claiming that she hadn't been feeling well and promising to make up for it. When she had come to this part of the territory, which was rather close to Thunderclan, the sun had indicated mid-day. Now she could see pink and orange hues creeping over the sky.

"Why were you here instead of at camp then?" Flamepaw sat up, curling her tail around her paws and yawning at she glanced in its direction.

 _Because I'm absolutely insane. What part of that is so hard to understand? Or not. Trees ARE a legitimate threat and I could've sworn it was falling. And how many times does it have to be mentioned that there WAS no stream. Argh. THIS is the problem. There IS a thrice accused stream._

"Have you ever tried to stay in camp without being bothered by someone?" She retorted, "and why does it sound like you two are investigating on your suspect for a crime scene or something? Why aren't your mentors getting annoyed at you yet?"

"They aren't annoyed because the assessment ended at sunset. I guess they just took our prey and left," Flamepaw shrugged, rising to her paws, "we should probably get going, actually."

"I agree," Sunpaw, who had been hovering near the edge of the narrow space within the undergrowth, spoke up.

The trail in this part of the forest had been for the most part unused. It was wild, overgrown, and most of all, twoleg-made. Most Skyclan cats preferred open spaces with the neared tree branches far above their heads and filtering in a great amount of sunlight. All three cats stumbled through it as fast as they could, but by the time they finally reached camp, the sun had set completely and they all expected a brief scolding by not so happy mentors and worried kin.

Crowd around the apprentices they did, but not in a way that any of them had anticipated. Icepaw found herself blinking back at the grim faces of her clanmates. She felt the fur rising along her spine, and turned around to see her denmates react with an equal amount of confusion.

"What's going on?" Flamepaw whispered, glancing at Sunpaw, "They look like they're about to send us to the Dark Forest."

Flamepaw barely had time to finish her sentence before they were swarmed by a few of their clanmates, each one trying to relay the day's events fast than the other. Icepaw flattened her ears, trying to block out the the sound of their chatter. Even Flamepaw was shocked beyond words, slowly trying to back away towards the entrance. Sunpaw was the first to snap back at the cats.

"Stop," he mewed quietly before speaking more loudly, "Stop talking all at the same time!" The command would have probably failed had it not been for Dustfur to step up and send the cats away.

"Dustfur..." Icepaw mewed hesistantly, but her mentor didn't have to answer. The scattered murmurs amongst the clan were enough for her to piece things together.

"It's happening again."

"Cats have disappeared."

"The Old Era was never really over."

The storm meant _nothing_ _._

* * *

 _Once long ago, the clans were in a time of merciless war. The warrior code had not yet been fully developped, and those who fought were often times less than honourable. No clan was ally to another, and in those times Skyclan was the most violent of them all. There is a reason why we have gone generations without a fight, always picking our allies carefully. We regret._

 _The Old Era was proceeded by a time of war, yet that time was one when each clans prospered, with more cats than you could possibly imagine. Perhaps it was the will of Starclan itself, although I doubt that they had any involvement in the turn of events, but it wasn't long before the war ended._

 _You see, it started slowly, with just one or two cats. There seemed to be nothing sinister about it. After all, it wasn't so unusual for cats to go missing in battle, or for deserters to decide to try a different lifestyle. The last cat to leave before things deteriorated was named Violetpaw._

 _When I said that things went downhill, I meant it. Not only did dozens of cats suddenly go missing, but many others suddenly died rather mysteriously in ways that were uncommon. At least three fell into the gorge, although there had thus far not been many mouse-brained enough to go near it._

 _What made it clear that it wasn't a series of coincidences? The flowers. Every single time a cat disappeared, a violet petal was found in their nest. It didn't matter how large of a group the cats were sent in. It was as though they were being picked out one by one. There wasn't any clear pattern however. It could be moons before a cat vanished, and the ones that did had nothing in common. From kits to elders to apprentices to the mightiest warrior, cats were suddenly gone._

 _The leaders reluctantly called for a truce, unwilling to lose any more cats, and sent their bravest warriors to investigate. Never was any more than a faint trail found. These cats never left with any side of a struggle._

 _Of course we seemed advice from Starclan, but they kindly reminded us that this was our path to unravel. Skyclan's leader at the time, Birdstar, accused them of picking sides and accused the other clans. Shadowclan, to be more specific. After all, they had only gotten one or two losses since the beginning of the ordeal._

 _There is a reason why Shadowclan closed its borders after the Great Storm. The legend says that they were brutally attacked by Skyclan on night. They were only saved by a terrible storm that lead the clan to grudgingly retreating. Birdstar swore revenge that night, for something had been stolen from her._

 _This part of the story is less specific, and much of it has been lost in time. It is said that Birdstar had three kits, each an almost identical copy of the other. Robinpaw, Nettlepaw, and Violetpaw._

 _I've always found it strange. It started with Violetpaw and ended with another. As the original Violetpaw's closest descendant, Birdstar's eldest kit was an obvious target. Whoever was committing the crimes had a taste for irony. After her disappearance, Birdstar took it as her task to rid Skyclan's land of all flowers. It sounds ridiculous, but she was determined to uproot all that represented the traitors. Including Shadowclan. It hardly mattered to her that there was a possibility of their innocence._

 _After the storm, there were no more disappearances, and Birdstar reluctantly agreed that the perpetrator had likely either perished in it or moved on, hence proving Shadowclan itself was not guilty. Shadowclan, however, swore vengeance and held their promise. It was not long ago that they suddenly isolated themselves. Always be wary of them._

 _This is our story. The story of our blood. We are not who you think we are. Take a moment to ask yourself which side of the mirror you are on._

* * *

"It's funny." Milkeye mewed.

"What?" Icepaw mewed distractedly, turning around at the elders words.

"Nothing, nothing. It's just that the Old Era ended with a storm,"

 _So? I'm tempted to question the point of this... but I see stuff that isn't there so who am I to talk?_ She sighed in defeat, "Oh..."

"And there was this huge storm when you and the other apprentices were just kits. That's when the first disappearance happened," he burrowed back into his nest, clearly uninterested in the subject, but the words struck out like lightning.

 _What? I though the oldest disappearance since the Great Storm dated back from... well today!_

She glanced around at the gathered cats, but none seemed to have heard the second part of his statement.

"Oh, yes, that storm was pretty bad. On that day Flamepaw, then Flamekit, tried to escape camp. I can never forget it look on everyone's face when she came back with a violet petal in her jaws. They don't even grow out here." Branchinglight added.

"Hilarious. If you wouldn't all mind either leaving or shutting up it'd be great now, and make sure to keep Flamewhatever away from here. Cats that joke around like that need some maturity," Barkwhisker growled.

After receiving a nod from Branchinglight, who also shot a glare towards Barkwhisker after his last comment, Icepaw gathered the elder's old moss and rose to her paws, padding away a little too quickly in her haste to get some time to think about Milkeye's words.

She wasn't exactly looking where she was going, and found herself tripping over her paws when she was met by what could only be describe as a furious-looking Flamepaw.

"It's funny, because I actually found that petal because of you."

 **I changed that last part at least ten times.**

 **Anyway, constructive criticism or reviews of any kind other than flaming are welcome, feel free to send in OCs, and have a great day.**

 **QotC: Any theories about the Old Era?**

 **-Key**


	6. Unblinking

**This could be the last update in a while. Not only am I busy, but I'll be away for a few weeks. I'll try to update at least once beforehand them.**

 **The whole 'originals and others' and mirrors thing is getting kind of repetitive, so it's the last chapter that mentions it in quite a while. But if you also found it annoying, do consider the fact that it was mention in three _different_ P. .**

 **Dappledleafthebootiful: Thanks, and that's an interesting theory.**

 _"Train harder!" "You'll get there someday." "You pathetic excuse for a cat! Get back up and finish what you started." "The clans weren't always like this." "Someday you'll be a warrior, but not the kind you might expect." "Why is it taking so long? Work faster!" "Darkstar! Darkstar! Darkstar!" "Good riddance, Flightstar was useless anyway." "Swallownose? What about Swallownose? He didn't have all his head." "Does anyone else wish to challenge me?" "You can be useful." "You can do it." "DO WHAT IS ASKED OF YOU." "Was that attitude I perceived?" "You risk punishment." "Always."_

 _Someday you'll all become stars: Skies away. And I'll be on top._

The events of the past two moons floated around in her head for a moment as the black spots receded from her vision and she finally managed to stumble to her paws.

"Why did you do that?" Shadowfoot ignored Snowpaw's question, "I'll come back," was all she said instead. It was Snowpaw's turn to pretend she hadn't heard anything, because once a cat committed a crime like this, they hardly ever came back. Just a couple of moons ago, she would have been surprised that the calico she-cat was not killed on the spot, but there had been so much change since then.

 _"Swallownose? What about Swallownose? Our so-called 'medicine cat' didn't have all his head. He left, and I say it's a good riddance," Blackstar growled, "after all, the word of the clan leader is the word of the code. Now, are we going to have a problem with this? Does anyone else wish to challenge me?" His words were met with silence,"That's better. Now, as I was saying, the cats that Swallownose chose to disreguard can still be useful to us...The youngest one especially."_

Snowpaw's claws slid out every time she though of the new leader's words. Blackstar hadn't elaborated on anything that she or Shadowfoot weren't already aware of, but they had at the same time condemned them to a predicament worse than the one inflicted by Swallownose. They were constantly monitored, given deadlines for their work, and there was not one moment in the past two moons that Snowpaw hadn't spent worrying that some cat would try to claw her face off. It was almost as though the clan was trying to complete all of their checklist in a limited amount of time, she had told herself.

Of course, it was only once she was invited to the moonlit clearing that she found out what the clan leader's words meant. She had been so eager to go to fourtrees; she had seen a possibility to escape. She never got to see the great rock that day, instead she had found herself faced with this...

 _"Not so fast," Snowpaw pretended not to hear the clan leader, and instead quickened her pace, desperate to see the other clans. She had a plan in mind, of course it was one that was rather optimistic, but it would have to do. If she could just make the others see how Riverclan treated its cats... they would have to do_ something _._

 _There was no second warning. One moment Snowpaw was cresting the small slope before the gathering hollow, and the next, she was falling. When she finally came to a stop at the bottom of the hill, the rough sand was digging into her fur, and her ears were ringing so loudly that she had difficulty finding her paws again, "I said, not so fast." The words sounded strangely muffled, sounds and images blurring together as the white and black spotted apprentice tried to find her bearings._

 _It wasn't until she tasted blood that she realized what had happened. Her ear was stinging madly and she felt disoriented when it came to anything at her left. Not only had the tip of her ear been clawed off, but half of her whiskers had also been trimmed by expert claws. A few had even been ripped clean off, she noted fuzzily as she looked down at the bare ground underpaw._

 _This is all my fault,_ she reflected. She was surprised that Shadowfoot hadn't deserted the clearing yet. After all, once Blackstar woke up she would be in serious danger. "I'm sorry," She muttered, but the older she-cat ignored her.

"From this day forward, you shall be known as Snowcreek, Starclan honours your determination and wit, and welcomes you as a full member of the _true_ clans." Springleap had performed the same ceremony for Shadowfoot once she reached twelve moons. "You forgot to ask if I promised to protect and defend my clan, even at the cost of my life." The comment was met by a moment of silence, followed by a flurry of spluttered laughter.

The laughter ended as abruptly as it started, and Snowpaw suddenly felt a flicker of panic, because Darkclaw had seen everything and Springleap- "Springleap!" Shadowfoot's eyes glittered with sympathy once the amber-eyed she-cat managed to find her voice. "Snowpaw, it's probably too late. Besides, I can't go back."

Reality really had a habit of being a smack in the face, "But Springleap?"

"Springleap can take care of herself," The words meant nothing, but they were most certainly a better option than speaking the truth. The reality that Snowpaw had caused with her own recklessness.

 _What is it called, that feeling that you get when you are in danger and you are unable to accept that there is no way out? Ah, yes, the survival instinct. Unfortunately survival has nothing to do with selflessness, and instincts rarely involve thinking plans through before executing them. When Snowpaw reared up on her hind paws with claws unsheathed instead of bowing down to accept her fate, her mind was occupied by the pain in her ear and the emptiness on her left, and the only part of her well enough to focus was the half-trained warrior._

 _In that moment she reveled in the feeling of power and control that came with the surprised look in Blackstar's eyes as the cowardly instincts in him made him take a step back only to trip on his own paws._

 _The moment, however, did not last long, "You insolent little apprentice, I allow you to stay in Riverclan, I give you a purpose instead of dispatching you after Swallownose and his crazy ramblings desert us, and yet you dare challenge me!" He roared, "You are going to Windclan whether you like it or not. If you refuse to bring back some useful information, you'll be dealt with." He said the words like an apprentice dealing with a tick._

 _Snowpaw dropped back to her paws, the heartbeat of triumph that she had felt replaced by cold dread, the burst of energy that had powered her just seconds ago receding as her ear sent sharp jolts of pain through her. Had she hit her head when she fell? The murderous look in the leader's eyes was enough to remind her that she was a half-trained nine moon old apprentice. At the same time, the dark-furred tom's anything but tactful and leader-like words had sparked a flame of curiosity._

 _"They'll take you in without a doubt. The soft-hearts," Darkstar scoffed. Snowpaw blinked, confused at the way he was talking, almost as though he were having a conversation with himself. Then again, his voice sounded strangely distant, and black spots were gathering at the edge of her vision. He could have been speaking dog for all she cared anyway: nothing he said ever came without hidden motives. That was probably why she didn't feel any hope storing inside of her when she was given a chance to leave Riverclan. Darkstar, however, did not interpret things that way._

 _"If you think for one second that you won't be monitored the whole time, you must think of me as an amateur. One foot wrong and you'll be joining whatever place the spirit of cats like you go to. You'll have to be a good little actor, because an adoptive clan won't be enough to protect you." Snowpaw nodded sluggishly, not quite sure what she was agreeing to._

 _The darkness from the night was stretching out to envelope her, the stars winking out one by one as darkness creeped over the edges of her conscience. What happened next was something she herself could not have predicted, "_ Never _." One word. It hardly even made sense considering obeying was her best chance at freedom._

 _Darkstar raised a paw, claws unsheathed, only for Snowpaw to slash at it weakly within her own claws; an all too familiar move the every apprentice learned performed in such a way that left no doubt as to whether or not it had been taught to her._

 _His eyes widened again, the muderous glint back once more,"Who showed you that?" he trailed off, eyes unfocused. This time when he lunged forwards it was with claws aimed at her throat. She hardly noticed, too focused on the stars as they continued to blow out like flames under the rain. The stars were also the reason she hadn't yet noticed the green eyes blinking back at her amber ones from the bushes._

"You have to leave too. Go to Windclan. Darkstar was right about that much, they'll take you in." That was the closest thing to farewell Snowpaw was going to get from her only ally.

"You still haven't told me why..." Snowp- _creek_. trailed off, looking down at claw-strike that had taken one of Darkstar's lives. _Good riddance._

Shadowfoot laughed, "One life lost with the Originals, one life lost with the Others. It's how things have always worked. It's all about balance. Perhaps someday I'll send Shadowtooth over to explain. For now you can't come with me, I need you in Windclan." None of those words made any sense to Snowcreek, but she nodded nonetheless. "Remember Snow _creek_ , there is only one rule: We are nothing but mirrors."

Snowcreek shivered; the words that had been spoken did not resemble her friend's usual aloof attitude.

 _Before Darkstar's claws had time to connect with their target, Shadowfoot was suddenly standing before Snowpaw, taking the blow on her own paws instead. Unlike Snowpaw, the green-eyed she-cat had moons of training to speak of and was more evenly matched with the leader. More evenly matched didn't mean anywhere near as good, but the element of surprise was nonetheless present._

 _Snowpaw didn't see any of what happened next, she was distracted by the flash of a cat with white fur that was immediately followed by darker brown tabby. Springleap and Darkclaw... She hardly had time to register that last fact before the last of the stars winked out._

 _Never have I heard of a cat called Shadowtooth... is she one of those 'others'?_ The time that it took for Snowpaw to be confused about Shadowfoot's words was the time that it took for her to disappear into the forest. She rose to her paws hesitantly, still unused to moving around without half her whiskers. _Originals, others, originals, others..._

When Snowcreek finally exited Riverclan territory, it wasn't to enter Windclan, and it wasn't as Snowpaw, or Snowcreek. _Star, how much if an amazingly ironic name can that be?_ she finally reached rogue territory, a fierce wind had whipped up, and she could hardly see where she was going. Even so, not once did she look back, or spare a single moment worrying about Springleap.

 _I can find Greyfeather..._

 _But first, I have cats to find._

 _Because Shadowpaw wasn't as cryptic as she thought she was_.

 **QotD: Was that too big of a timeskip?**

 ** _Review..._**

 **-Key**


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